Oklahoma vs Texas: Sooners, Horns Renew College Footballs Greatest Rivalry

College football's greatest rivalry will once again be renewed this Saturday, when the Oklahoma Sooners and Texas Longhorns battle it out in Dallas inside the Cotton Bowl.

As usual, the Red River Rivalry will have both conference and national significance. Both teams enter undefeated and are looking to get an early edge in the Big-12 championship race.

For the Sooners, a win would make a statement to the pollsters that they deserve the No. 1 ranking that they have been stripped of by A.P. voters riding the SEC bandwagon. The Longhorns will be trying to show the nation they are back and belong in the national championship picture.

After Texas struggled last season, it could have been expected that the Longhorns would not be given much of a chance at beating a team like Oklahoma. By starting the season 4-0 and continuing to climb the rankings, Texas has at least made this already highly anticipated match-up even more intriguing. Enough so that ESPN College Gameday will pay a visit to the fairgrounds.

It's not just the stature of both teams that makes this rivalry special. The atmosphere alone is unmatched by any other game. The 50 yard line divides the orange and crimson. The atmosphere surrounding the tunnel on the south end of the stadium is the most intense environment in American sports.  

It's a rivalry rich with tradition and anticipation that has been building since fans walked the midway at last years state fair. For Oklahoma fans, just the smell of corn dogs and cotton candy reminds them of the 28-20 victory the Sooners enjoyed over the Horns last year. For Texas fans there's still a bitter taste in their mouths over how that game and the rest of that season went.

Why the Sooners Will Win

Oklahoma is the most complete team in the country. Jones is a Heisman candidate at quarterback, and his 425 yards and five touchdowns last week showed us what he can do when he has both of his favorite targets—WR Ryan Broyles and WR Kenny Stills—on the field together. And the defense dominated when it counted most, on the road against No. 5 Florida State.

Offensive coordinator Josh Heupel has finally decided to go with walk-on RB Dominique Whaley as his featured back. Whaley, when given the opportunity, has shown the ability to be a difference maker in the run game. The junior has already rushed for over 100 yards in a game twice this year despite splitting the carries with Sophomore Brennan Clay. Against Ball State, he ran for 109 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries in just over one half of football. He's also a play maker in the passing game.

The most impressive thing about the offense against Ball State was the play of the offensive line. Particularly, the discipline shown by not committing a single penalty.

If Oklahoma wins, it will be because they will experience success in the running game and the defense will prove to be too stingy for a Texas offense still trying to find it's identity. The two quarterback system worked fine against below average competition, but in a game this big, an offense needs leadership from their quarterback.

QB Case McCoy and QB David Ash will likely be caught off guard by the speed of the Sooner defense. Do the Horns have a solid decision maker behind center? We will definitely find out on Saturday.

Why the Longhorns Will Win

The bottom line is that Oklahoma is just better on both sides of the ball. Texas fans might not want to believe that after watching their Horns dominate the likes of Rice and Iowa State, but they still need to do it against a proven offense like the Sooners did in Tallahassee.

Despite the Sooners advantages, Jones has been prone to make mistakes in big games. Some early interceptions against Missouri kept the Tigers closer than they should have been. He also struggled against the Seminoles until the fourth quarter and forced the Sooners' offense to play more conservative and rely on the run.

The Oklahoma defense has been known to give up some big plays in the secondary in recent years. The Longhorns are not as equipped to take advantage of that weak spot as they have been in the past. But, WR Jaxon Shipley has some of the same big play capability that his brother had.

The Sooner defense under coordinator Brent Venables is extremely aggressive. This can play into the hands of the Longhorns. Texas loves to run misdirection plays, which can payoff against an aggressive defense. If Texas is able to catch the Sooners defense off guard with a reverse or two, Texas might be able to grab some momentum, which is always huge in this game.

If Texas wins in Dallas, it will likely be because they win the turnover battle and the Sooners aren't able to adjust to the misdirection plays. In other words, Mack Brown's new coaching staff will have to out-coach one of the best coaching staffs in the country.

Prediction

Because of Texas' weak schedule, the Longhorns still have not proven that they have overcome the problems that cost them last season. Do they have a quarterback and a defense to compete against the elite teams?

The answer is no. The two-headed quarterback system historically has not been a recipe for championship caliber football. And, that's the type of football Texas will need to play in order to beat a team like Oklahoma.

This Saturday, the Sooners will prove to be too much as their offense continues to put up big numbers against an outmatched Texas defense. The Longhorns will struggle to put points on the scoreboard against an Oklahoma defense trying to prove it isn't too far behind LSU and Alabama. They won't have to play SEC type defense to beat this Texas team.

Texas needs too much to go wrong for the Sooners if they want to come away with a win. Oklahoma is already battle tested this year and Texas is still unsure of itself. The Horns will be outmatched from the moment they face the Sooner faithful coming out of the south tunnel.

Texas will stay close for a half, but the Sooners will pull away late and win 38-20 thanks to a big day by Whaley.